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ULI Poland November 2021 Newsletter
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Gdańsk – the city that pulses with life
November 25, 2021
The largest city of the TriCity is one of those few in Poland that can expect its population to keep growing over the next fifteen or more years. “The challenge the city faces is its internal development with intensive rebuilding and construction of the city’s urban structures while ensuring that each area has a wide range of uses. We can also see a need to create new district centres in the rapidly developing parts of the city such as the south,” said ALEKSANDRA DULKIEWICZ, the mayor of GDAŃSK, during a meeting that was held as part of the 8 QUESTIONS AROUND THE CITY series.
“As part of a series of online meetings with mayors of the largest cities in Poland ‘Around a City In 8 Questions ‘, we are delighted to be able to talk to the mayor of Gdańsk, who will tell us and our viewers about how the city is going to develop over the coming years” – With these words Joanna Wojnarowska, partner and head of the real estate department at DWF Poland and member of the executive committee of ULI Poland, welcomed the guests to the meeting.
To serve the needs of such a population, a density was decided upon for residential, production and service facilities within the city’s limits and based on this decisions were taken on where new construction could go. As a result, the farming areas around Olszynka and the land on Sobieszewska island have been excluded from any future development.
Best on foot
The Gdańsk city authorities have settled on a concept of a city of short distances (a 15-minute city). “I often come to work on foot myself,” says Aleksandra Dulkiewicz. Another priority is to improve the mix of uses of each area and to develop retail and services, green areas and also production and storage facilities. “We want to create public spaces that are people-friendly where everyday life can carry on as well as to develop facilities for pedestrians and cyclists. We plan to strengthen the role nature plays in our city and create a new park in the city’s rapidly developing southern district. This will improve people’s quality of life as well as give residents a place to spend their time outdoors surrounded by nature. We also want to create green alleys by placing tall trees along the city’s main communication routes and this will have a positive effect on the microclimate, making the city even friendlier for its people,” she declares.
And the city’s population is set to grow, at least according to demographic forecasts. These forecasts aren’t just made up out of thin air since Gdańsk is attracting people due to factors such as its job market. According to figures from a Gdańsk city study in 2018, the population was projected to grow to 500,000 by 2045 and this was the growth figure used to draw up the City Strategy 2030 plus.
As for the area on the border of the cultural park, that is dependent on the acceptance of the conservation plan based on the findings/guidelines set out by the Pomeranian Monument Conservator,” explains the mayor of Gdańsk.
New road plans on the way
Additional construction work with the city growing into new areas will not be a smooth process without the appropriate planning. Fortunately, a large proportion – 65 pct – of Gdańsk is already covered by a spatial plan. “And if we include forest land, the figure is even higher,” points out Aleksandra Dulkiewicz. Urban plans are in preparation that will cover more land. The most important of these is the plan for the Południowy park [Southern park], the PKM South railway corridor and the centre of town next to the border of the culture park. The question is when can we expect the plans for these areas to be completed: “The proceedings to change the spatial plans for the Połudnowy park will be the first to begin at the beginning of 2022 (currently the average time to change spatial plans in Gdańsk is over two years).
The next planned changes are dependent on obtaining official rulings/recommendations based on the environmental study on the final route for the PKM South railway line and this work is to be completed in September 2023.
The backbone of the city
A 15-minute city does not mean that public transportation becomes unnecessary, rather just the opposite. It is crucial for the integration of the entire community. The backbone of public transportation for the entire urban area is the SKM railway link, but now this requires further investment in its infrastructure. “For the last two years we’ve been concentrating on rail transportation and we are investing more in it as part of the Gdańsk Public Transportation Project,” explained the mayor.
“Millions are being invested in such projects. The Gdańsk Południe to Wrzeszcz tram line as well as road links comes at a cost of PLN 300 million. We’re planning to finance this with funds from the European Operational Programme for Infrastructure and the Environment over the 2021 to 2027 perspective. We intend to apply for funds from this programme for stage 1 of the green embankment road and tramline network from ul. Hallera – Jana Pawła II to ul. Obrońców Wybrzeża, which we estimate will cost PLN 250 million. Other possible tram routes are being considered in southern Gdańsk as well as lines that run outside the city,” says Aleksandra Dulkiewicz.
For city hall, what is crucial for the development of the city is the industrial logistics port (Stogi island in the seaport area), the new technology industry (in the vicinity of the airport) and the tourism and recreation industry (in the Pas Nadmorski [coastal strip] area). “We are trying to keep the tempo up in the growth of the city’s economy, but we prefer investment that creates high-paid jobs,” says Aleksandra Dulkiewicz.
Driven by investors
No plans nor infrastructure investments would be required, were it not for investors. They are attracted by the city’s strategic location and deep labour pool and this, in turn, makes the city more enticing. The city authorities also argue that they are part of the reason for the city’s attraction. “The city has always gone to every effort to ensure that administrative investment procedures are concluded on time. A special department of the Gdańsk Development Agency is devoted to supporting strategic investment in new technology as well as services and industry for the city’s development and it owns land where investment parks are being built. These have all the necessary infrastructure including internal roads. As a result of such a comprehensive approach to land management, an investor will need less time to complete an investment project and will be granted a building permit sooner,” argues the mayor of Gdańsk.
Stressing the advantages
Among the sectors considered to be crucial to the future of Gdańsk is the recreation industry. Tourism services and entertainment are being developed along the coastal strip. Soon the Dom Zdrojowy health farm is to reopen. The centre has been under renovation since last year. But this is not the end of all the planned investments. “We need to make the coastal strip more attractive and improve its recreational facilities while preserving nature and the historical setting. We also want to improve the recreational and water-sport facilities along the coastal strip. And this is how we will make full use of the city’s potential,” explains Aleksandra Dulkiewicz.
Battling climate change
As a coastal city, Gdańsk is particularly vulnerable to the changes that might arise from the warming of the climate. According to a study conducted as part of the City Climate Change Adaptation Plan, the most serious threat to Gdańsk (due to the shape and location of the city) is the sudden appearance of flash floods as well as sea floods in times of storm. As a result, the city has invested in a monitoring system. “To face the threat, water level measuring points have been set up (at Port Południowy and on the Martwa Wisła) as part of the ongoing development of the city’s monitoring system. New points are also planned for the system,” says the city public official. Gdańsk’s hydrological monitoring system, to measure water levels in retention lakes as well as rainfall, also includes an electronic alarm system to give advanced warning of possible flood threats. “Working with residents and private investors, we are going to create a blue-green infrastructure for the city. In Gdańsk, we only apply the most rigorous standards for managing rainwater and so we prefer mainly to rely on surface systems, which often means more and more retention facilities. We use natural land depressions, rain gardens and retention parks,” says Aleksandra Dulkiewicz and she adds that subsidies can be paid out for creating rain gardens from the city budget and projects can also be financed from the Citizens Green Budget.
“Polish cities are developing and despite problems with financing some investments, they continue to use the best international models of sustainable development to raise their residents’ quality of life. Gdańsk is one of the leading cities when it comes to this approach and, as a result, it is successful and is attracting new people,” says Søren Rodian Olsen, the head of ULI Poland and the managing director of Logicenters from the NREP group.
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“AROUND THE CITY IN 8 QUESTIONS” is a series of virtual meetings with the Mayors of the largest Polish cities. The purpose of the meetings is to present the strategy and spatial policy as well as the vision of the city’s development, and to enable an open dialogue between the city’s authorities and representatives of the real estate industry. During the meetings we discuss the plans that city authorities have to make their cities more environmentally sustainable, resilient and inclusive, but also competitive and attractive to investors and young talent.
All meetings with mayors are hosted by TOMASZ SZPYT-GRZEGÓRSKI, editor-in-chief of Property Insider.
Partners of the series are Grenberg Traurig, Mercer, ABSL, Globalworth, Skanska, Colliers, Cushman & Wakefield, DWF, Dentons, Echo Investment, Hines, MDDP, Vastint and 7R SA. Media Patrons are Masto.Pro, Property Insider, Property News and UrbNews. THANK YOU!
